Football Federation Australia (FFA) has today announced that it is moving forward with an independent review of the process by which the national teams are managed, including the decision-making processes and the way in which items are reported to the FFA Board, to ensure each team is operating at the highest of standards.
FFA Chairman, Chris Nikou said “The decision of the Board to replace Alen Stajcic as the Matildas coach is not under review or subject to review. However, the process raised questions for the Board on the manner in which conduct, performance and information are addressed by FFA as an organisation.”
The review will be carried out by a three-member Independent Panel to be chaired by Diane Smith-Gander AO. Diane Smith-Gander AO is a professional non-executive director following a career in management consulting with McKinsey & Company and banking. Diane played representative level basketball, chaired ASDA in the 1990s and served as Chair of Basketball Australia during the period the sport unified. She recently served on the panel reviewing APRA’s capability – a Hayne Royal Commission recommendation.
The other panel members are Rod McGeoch AO and Liz Ellis AO.
Rod McGeoch AO is a non-executive director (of both government and non-government boards) following a career in the law as a partner of Corrs Chambers Westgarth and former time President of the Law Society of NSW. In the sporting sphere he served on the boards of the Sydney Olympic Bid, the Games that followed, NSW Rugby and currently is Deputy Chairman and Trustee of the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).
Liz Ellis AO is a former Captain of the Australian Diamonds netball team. Liz represented Australia for fifteen seasons, winning two Commonwealth Games gold medals and three World Cup gold medals, the last as captain. She also captained the Sydney Swifts to four ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ League titles and was named the league MVP on four occasions. Liz holds a Bachelor of Arts/Law and practiced for four years as a solicitor before pursuing a broadcast career. She is a respected commentator and columnist for Nine. She has also served on numerous boards, including Sport Australia, The NSW Institute of Sport and the Sydney Olympic Park Authority.
The panel will undertake interviews with relevant FFA senior management and national team staff, as well as review of documentation, information and correspondence.
The panel will compile a confidential report and provide findings and recommendations to the FFA Board by the end of October 2019. The FFA Board will consider the report and, where appropriate, will share publicly a summary of the findings and next steps.
A summary of the terms of reference for the review can be found .
